Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Say Word?! Gaga Beats Oprah As Forbes Most Influential Celeb… Hov & Bey Didn...

 
 

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via Bossip by EditorialGrrl on 5/18/11

Lady Gaga and Oprah Winfrey top Forbes Celebrity 100 list

She might have only made less than a third of Queen O's income last year, but Forbes Magazine has deemed Lady Gaga this year's most influential celebrity.

The magazine's Celebrity 100 list came out today, and with youth and social media on her side, Gaga wins.

Lady Gaga topples Oprah Winfrey from her No.1 spot on our list, which she's given up for only the third time in seven years. Gaga is there not just because of the $90 million she earned with a monster tour, but also because of her 32 million Facebook fans and 10 million Twitter followers–aka Little Monsters–who helped move 1 million digital downloads of her recent single "Born This Way" in only five days. They're also happy to buy the MAC makeup, Monster headphones and Virgin Mobile phones she features in her videos.

Oprah doesn't fall far though. The daytime talk maven, who earned $290 million last year, comes in second. Winfrey's earnings sank $25 million partially due to a reduced payday at SiriusXM. She still earns big from her syndicated show and from the stars she's spawned, including Dr. Phil (No. 18) Rachael Ray and Dr. Oz. Winfrey's earning power will take a bigger hit next year, when her syndicated show ends and she concentrates all her efforts on the struggling OWN network.

Maybe it would help if Oprah took a lesson from No. 3 Justin Bieber. The Biebs debuts on our list at the tender young age of 17, with $53 million earned over the last 12 months thanks to concerts, music sales and a 3-D documentary movie that grossed $100 million at the global box office. If this were 10 years ago Bieber would still be paying his dues in small clubs and schools, but thanks to the Internet, he's a sensation. His first hit song, "Baby," has been viewed 500 million times, a YouTube record.

Reality TV it girl Bethenny Frankel is another newbie worth noting. Famous for her newest hit show, Bethenny Ever After, she's used the small-screen platform to promote her Skinnygirl brand, helping her earn $55 million this year. She joins our list in 42nd place. Her entrepreneurial prowess–she sold her Skinnygirl Cocktails to Fortune Brands ( FOPRA – news – people ) and nabbed a $100 million cut of the deal paid out over multiple years–also put her on the cover of our magazine this week.

Flip the pages to Our (read: "Urban") top ten on the Celebrity 100 list and what Forbes had to say about them.



 
 

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